Managing Strawberry Diseases Using All Available Tools
Computer Generated Presentation with Script
Zachary Snipes
Extension Agent
Clemson Extension
Charleston
Team Members:
Snipes, Z*1
-
Extension Agent, Clemson Extension, Charleston, South Carolina, 29401
Abstract
I hosted a strawberry meeting in my county last year and decided that a talk on strawberry disease management was necessary. I see hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars wasted each year on diseased fruit. Many of the issues I see can and should be easily managed. I decided to present on strawberry diseases but take a different approach to presenting the material. I wanted growers to think about disease management as a function of time. When would they see disease and when should they manage it. I set the stage by introducting the diseses and the times that growers should expect them. I gave some recomendations at planting for common diseases that I see. I then transitioned into how to manage disease once the plants start to bloom. I was hoping to shift thier focus from keeping the plant alive to making it function at full capacity. I then showed a few videos that were created by Clemson Scientists. I think having a few videos in a presentation really changes the pace of back to back presentations and gives the audience a different platform on which to learn. The videos highlighted the two most common fruit diseases. They featured what they look like, how they spread, how they thrive, and most importantly how we as managers can control them. Once the video was finished, I introduced resources that can help with disease management. The resources included a website, paper copies, and an app that all have the same information. Having multiple sources of the same information allows agents to meet growers where they are at. I then introduced cool research that could be done on-farm to help out with growers production and offered the assistance to them on thier farm. I concluded with a few tips that would help them before and during the season. I am confident based on evaluations that growers that attended the meeting are more knowledgeable and aware of strawberry diseases. Hopefully the presentation will result in more money staying on the farm.
Years of CES Service: 0
PowerPoint File